James Drury, star of Western series The Virginian, dies at 85

By Dave McNary| 2 months ago

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) — James Drury, best known for starring in the long-running Western series The Virginian, died Monday of natural causes. He was 85.

His assistant, Karen Lindsey, posted the news on Facebook: "It is with immense sadness that I let you all know that James Drury, our beloved Virginian and dear friend passed away this morning of natural causes, Monday, April 6, 2020. He will be missed so much. It is beyond words. Memorial service to be determined later."

Drury was born April 18, 1934 in New York City. During his childhood, the family made multiple trips to the family ranch in Oregon, where he developed a love for horses and the outdoor life. He first appeared on stage at the age of 8 when he played King Herod in a children's Christmas play. He made his professional acting debut at the age of 12 in a touring company of Life With Father.

Actor James Drury as he appears in television show, The Virginian, in 1965. (Getty)

Drury was trained as an actor at New York University and credited with 12 Shakespeare roles. He went to Hollywood in 1954 and worked on Blackboard Jungle, Forbidden Planet, The Tender Trap, Love Me Tender, and Pollyanna. He guest starred on Playhouse 90, Gunsmoke, Cheyenne, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Wagon Train, Rawhide and Death Valley Days before being cast in the lead role of The Virginian in 1962.

Drury's quiet character, who always wore a black cowboy hat, had no name other than The Virginian. He portrayed the tough foreman of the fictional Shiloh Ranch set in the latter part of the 19th century in the Wyoming Territory. Many of the 249 episodes, airing over nine seasons until 1971, involved his character fending off outlaws and rustlers. Each episode would run for 90 minutes.

"There were times when we had five Virginian episodes shooting on the same day," Drury recalled in his biography on his official web site. "I would literally ride on horseback from set to set to give two lines here, three lines there, then over here to do 10 pages of script."

Drury celebrating his 85 birthday on April 2019, which sadly would be his last. (Facebook)

The Virginian, which aired on NBC, had the third-longest run of any TV Western, topped only by CBS's Gunsmoke (20 seasons) and NBC's Bonanza (14). Drury and co-star Doug McClure appearsed on all 249 episodes.

In its last year, the show was re-titled The Men From Shiloh. In the book A History of Television's The Virginian, 1962-1971, Drury said he was sad that the show was cancelled and added, "I would have gone on for another 10 years."

Drury starred in the ABC series Firehouse and appeared on series Alias Smith and Jones, The Adventures of Brisco County Jr., The Fall Guy and Walker, Texas Ranger. In recent years, he had maintained an extensive travelling schedule to Western events, festivals and autograph shows across the country "speaking about the West and how cowboy values shaped our country and how those values still hold true to those who will adhere to them."